Back-to-School

I don't know about where you live, but the first day of school was today for the year-round schools in my area. I always feel bad for kids when they have to go back :-( I know that was always such a difficult transition for me to go from carefree-summer to new class, new teacher, new school year.

Aside from the nerves, I do love the back-to-school time of year. To quote one of my all-time favorite movies, "It makes me wanna buy school supplies. I would send you a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils if I knew your name and address."

Haha, I can so relate! Can you guess which movie that's from? I'll tell you at the bottom of this post :-) Having quoted that, one of my favorite parts of back-to-school when I was a kid was... back-to-school shopping! My sister and I made an event out of it. School supply shopping was pretty fun, and it took the edge off of the new school year starting. I'm not sure if it was the smell of the flexible, plastic pencil cases or the fresh-cut wood smell of new No. 2 pencils, but I really looked forward to it at the end of every summer.

When I was in elementary school, Lisa Frank was freaking HUGE and sooo sooo popular. That brand was by far my absolute favorite. I had Lisa Frank everything- folders, stickers, notebooks, pencils, you name it, me or my sister probably had it. And as the saying goes, "Lisa Frank- you gotta have it!" ;-) Haha. I used to know the entire commercial by heart. I wonder if LF is still around for kids these days... I never see it in the back-to-school section, so I'm guessing no.

Is anyone else out there as excited for back-to-school as I am?! Minus the whole I-feel-bad-for-the-kids thing, I really love this time of year. Whether you are in school or not, the school year starting is a time for a fresh start and new beginnings, almost like a 2nd spring or New Year's! One by one, I know schools will be starting up again all over the country, and that means the season of fall will become more and more prevalent. Anyway, as summer vacation (not summer itself, of course) winds down to an end here in Arizona, I'd like to wish all those cute little kiddos out there a safe, happy, fun and smart school year!

I hope you're THIS excited for back-to-school!!!

And here's the answer you've been waiting for:  The quote was from... You've Got Mail! That was Tom Hanks writing to Meg Ryan in the beginning scenes of the movie. If you haven't seen that movie or if it's been a while, I recommend you watch it. I always like to relive it as we transition out of the hot days of summer and into the beginning of fall. It's a classic! Have a great day, and feel free to go buy yourself a bouquet of freshly sharpened pencils :-D You deserve it!

Heartfelt Thoughts and Prayers to Colorado

I wanted to break away from my normal blogging subject to recognize and give my most heartfelt thoughts and prayers to the victims, families and friends of the shooting that happened in Colorado on Friday morning. I don't know what to say, or what to make of all this, but I do know with people like Holmes, you cannot make sense of their actions. They are senseless. In these situations, it is natural for people to try to sort through the information and figure out a reason why. Of course people will always wonder why these things happen, because sometimes knowing a motive can help to bring a sense of closure, but regardless of the motive, it will never justify the action. These people cannot be rationalized, and we cannot apply our own psychology and thought process to someone who is a sociopath. I truly wish there was something that could be done to prevent people from becoming this way so these things never happen. It is just unbelievable, and unacceptable, that we live in a world where things like this still occur.

I am not one of those people that will try and find a silver lining in this devastating act, so I will just say that I am praying for those affected by this and I hope that they can find something to help them survive this tremendous loss. I am absolutely heartbroken for the parents who will be entering the awful world of bereaved parenthood.

If there is someone you know who is in need of help or someone to talk to, please consider reaching out to the MISS Foundation. It is run by Dr. Joanne Cacciatore, a grief counselor that works with people who have suffered from tragic loss, mainly bereaved parents, as she is a bereaved parent herself. The foundation is funded by charitable donations, so those who are suffering don't have to worry about not being able to afford a quality grief counselor. I have no affiliation whatsoever with this foundation, just trying to lend a helping hand for those in need. Here is the contact information for the foundation:

Website: http://www.missfoundation.org/
One-on-one support: 1-888-455-MISS
Office: 602-279-MISS
Fax: 623-979-1001
E-mail: info@missfoundation.org
Dr. Cacciatore's E-mail: joanne@missfoundation.org

Again, I am so sorry for those suffering, and I cannot begin to comprehend what they must be going through. I will continue to keep them in my thoughts and prayers, with the hope that they can find the help needed to try and cope with their tremendous loss.